Very interesting list, and each on it have their own problems to deal with. In many of these cases when you exclude a country like Norway that has tremendous revenue from the oil industry, the universal problem is whether these governments can provide healthcare long term and maintain their standard of living.

I'm with the thought that the best health care is a system where:1. Everyone is required to have it.2. There is a cost when using it.3. Providers compete for business.4. The end consumers have choice on where to receive it.5. Ensure there are good standards on qualifications for health care providers, but provide different levels of qualifications so supply of providers is adequate. IE: There is no reason to see a DR when have a low grade illness. Should see nurse and get charged for a nurse.

Unfortunately,in the US the masses are duped into believing that one's employer should choose an individual's health insurance coverage as a result there is no competition at the provider/consumer level.

At 7/22/2013 11:27:47 PM, llamainmypocket wrote:They forgot to mention the country that makes it possible by paying for all the drug research. Typical Frenches.

haha I agree with this to some extent.

The issue of best healthcare status always revolves around the access to healthcare, it's affordability and its quality - for the greatest number of people.

What it never seems to be focused on is healthcare development.

The US is far from qualifying as the best when it comes to the categories above (unless you can afford it, and then it's easily the best for those who can) but it easily is the leader in the other aspect mentioned.

Which system best creates the incentives to develop the medications, technology and procedures every other country eventually uses to increase its populations standard of living and quality of care?

In almost all significant cases, the US.

So for US citizens who can't afford the highest quality care here, know that while your health care may be mediocre and health issues may lead you to bankruptcy, recognize that your sacrifice leads to the healthcare breakthroughs that have led to an increased standard of living and qualify of life for nearly the entire planet. Kudos to you, US citizen.

The survey is bogus because it doesn't depend upon actual delivered heathcare, but depends upon the policies that may or may not actually deliver healthcare. Suppose a country has one doctor, one nurse, and one hospital room, but all health services are provided completely free to every citizen. The way the survey is scored, that will get about two-thirds of the points possible, even though very few people can actually receive health care through the system.

The US health care system pre-Obamacare was certainly one of the best in the world at delivering care. East Asian women living in New Jersey have longer live expectancy than those living in Japan. US health costs are run up by the unique requirements for an emergency care system to respond to traffic accidents, heart attacks, and drug overdoses. A woman in Japan had a brain aneurism and her family called 19 hospitals before they found one that could take her.

For the population as a whole, mortality rates are not a very good measure of the health care system. In the U.S., auto accidents, gun violence from street gangs, drug overdoses, and suicides produce large numbers of deaths of young people. That lowers the life expectancy in the averages. Those problems are serious, but they are not health care problems. If you manage to live to 55, the US life expectancy thereafter is the longest in the world.

Finally, if there is basic sanitation and immunizations then 80% of health is lifestyle: exercise, diet, lack of stress. The US lifestyle is horrendous, so the success is all the more remarkable.